Preparing for Your Time in the Community

Clothing

When entering a new culture it is important that your dress is suitable and respectful of the people you will be visiting. Traditional African culture requires females to wear a long, loose fitting skirt (calf length and below) when going into the communities. Tight and revealing clothing is not advised. If cold, females can wear tights or pants under their skirt. It is acceptable for women to wear trousers when joining the building team or shorts on the Hands at Work campus. For men, long trousers must be worn when in communities or visiting a community church. It is good to have nice clothing for different outings and church, etc.

It is important to be VERY modest with jewellery, as you do not want to be a target for thieves during your time in Africa. Also, wearing too much jewellery can separate you from the people in the community as you may be seen as even more different to them. This can make it difficult to connect with people in the community.

Safety

High levels of unemployment and poverty lead to issues with theft and safety. It’s important that when walking around, you dress appropriately (i.e. minimal, non-flashy jewellery) and you don’t display expensive equipment (i.e. Keep cameras out of sight, etc). Do not bring valuables unnecessarily into the communities (i.e. passport, plane tickets). Carry minimal amounts of cash and keep it hidden or in a money belt.

Gifts Policy

When visiting the families and children, it can be overwhelming to see so many needs around you. There are times when visitors feel led to give a gift to a patient or family. With our work there are priorities/goals for our Community Based Organisations (CBO) that they have set and want to achieve. The CBO is working towards “Building the Wall” of protection around their orphaned & vulnerable children. There are many opportunities to contribute toward this “building”. Hands at Work’s first priority is to join the CBO to achieve this. We want you to give if you feel led, but to follow the correct process of giving via Hands at Work to the CBO.

We don’t want to create a sense of dependency and expectation of handouts and gifts from all foreigners that come around. We are all about serving our community and empowering them to help themselves as well as those around them. No gifts are to be distributed while in the community. Do not promise gifts to the community either while you are there as this creates the same challenges. Please consult the leadership if you would like to leave behind a “brick” to be given via Hands at Work Service Centre staff.

People Asking for Money

Poverty is a huge problem in Africa and you may come across people in the street asking for money as a consequence. It can be quite distressing to be confronted by poverty, particularly when it is young children or very elderly people. If you are stopped on the street it is best not to give anything as you may soon find yourself surrounded by more people asking for food or money. If you are being harassed seek help from your Team Leader. In some cases it also fosters a dependency on handouts, holding some people back from pursuing work.

In the Community

Life Centres

When 3 Essential Services begins in a community, children gather daily at a Care Point to receive food and care. In recent years Hands at Work has began the push to transform these Care Points into Life Centres. The very word Life Centre speaks of the purpose – to bring a taste of shalom, of life and care to this community and its orphaned and vulnerable children. We dream for our Life Centres to embrace a ‘culture of care’. In the below diagram, it’s possible to see how different elements come together to form this culture of care that we want to surround our vulnerable children in. As our local offices, Regional Support Teams and International teams regularly visit communities, they work alongside Care Workers to support them in developing this picture into a reality.

Holy Home Visits

A Home Visit is beneficial, not just in understanding the external needs of a child, but in spending time to engage with a child’s hurting heart. Although Home Visits may carry a high personal cost of time, emotion, and energy, they are the gospel coming to life and bringing transformation.

At Hands at Work, the foundation of our care is Holy Home Visits.

Visiting an orphaned child in their home is to act on behalf of the absent parent. During that visit, the opportunity is given to a child to put aside the stresses of home, of responsibility, and just be a child. Home visits demand time, and can only be effective with the right desire of heart: the choice to go, and the willingness to get to know the child’s name and story. We know we have been adopted into Christ's family and we want to see the same realisation in our children. We cannot create a culture of changing lives through brief service. Change does not come quickly; it comes with time and commitment.

While in community, your team may have the opportunity to participate in a Relationship Group with either Care Workers, Caregivers or children. These groups provide a space for people to talk about the wounds and pain in their lives. Through sharing, healing is found and lives are transformed. Relationship Groups are particularly important as relationships with both God and with other people are the centre of the message of Jesus Christ, and of the Hands at Work family. This accompanying booklet is mainly used to introduce new people to Relationship Groups and to guide leaders facilitating the Relationship Groups. The booklet isn’t designed to be teaching material or to dictate certain steps of how to conduct a formal meeting, but rather it explains the very heart of relationships based on the heart of our Father. We encourage you to discuss this booklet with your team in order to prepare for your participation in the groups.

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Nurses for Africa sends teams of nurses from North America to Hands at Work in Africa for two weeks. They provide much needed clinics in our communities where there is little medical care available or accessible. They teach the #PrimaryCaregivers and #CareWorkers basic health care so that they can support the vulnerable that they are caring for. They do amazing work in helping to bring relief to those who are suffering from malaria and other diseases. ⠀
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Pray for the Nurses for Africa teams who are coming in 2018. Ask God to open their hearts and minds to what He wants to do in and through them while they are in Africa.

"I wasn't quite sure what I was getting myself into when I went to the gathering, but I was looking forward to learning about what it meant to advocate for Hands at Work. What I wasn't expecting was to be completely challenged while I was there. I wasn't expecting God to touch my life in the way He did. This weekend has challenged me to make some changes - not just in the way I advocate for the most vulnerable - but with my home life too. One of the big things that stood out for me from the gathering is leaving a legacy and what that means. I realised that my role as a mom is really important and that I need to make sure I'm passing the love of Jesus and God, and the work that we are doing in Africa, to my kids.”⠀ - Nicole, International #Advocate (#US) ⠀
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When people come to Africa, many of them experience Jesus in new and profound ways and bring back a seed of hope to their home country. At the end of last year, advocates of Hands at Work in the US gathered for a weekend of seeking God’s heart as they discern how to faithfully plant that seed and grow it across the US.⠀
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"But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant." – Matthew 20:26⠀ ⠀
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#Scripture #ChristAsOurFoundation

FRIDAY | Going Deeper is one of our four rotating Friday meetings. It is a time of teaching from members of the Hands leadership to help refocus ourselves on Christ and His calling for us. The teaching is based upon our Core Values and the Biblical foundations of who we are.⠀
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Thank you for joining us this week!

THURSDAY | Individuals are invited to join a time of prayer. Where they can come and intercede on behalf of others and share prayer request for themselves.

WEDNESDAY | The Hands Community is broken into smaller groups who meet, share and fellowship in various homes. These groups exist to deepen relationships, facilitate spiritual growth, and create a safe environment for individuals to share openly.⠀
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#Family

TUESDAY | All ladies come together to commit their personal and global needs to God and praise Him for answered prayer. This is a time to minister to one another and to experience growth as different ladies take turns leading.⠀
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#Pray

The whole community meets together to commit the week and our work to God in prayer and to spend time together. Small groups take turns facilitating, focusing on what they feel is important for our family at that time through the use of scripture, prayer, and worship. We also spend part of this time on family announcements: celebrating birthdays, praying for those traveling, and communicating news. Monday mornings are more than just prayer meetings – they are family time!⠀
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This morning we were praying for our children and #CareWorkers in Matsinho Community, #Mozambique.

Gathering together on a daily basis is an integral part of the community of Hands at Work in Africa.They are where smaller communities are knit closer together and individuals begin to look out for one another. The Hands Community is built on the foundation of Christ and we are called to express our worship, prayers, and faith together as a community. ⠀
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This week, join the Hands at Work community as we gather together. ⠀
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#Community #Worship

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40 Days of Prayer is an active reminder of our brothers and sisters in Africa, and the connection we have. Often, in the busyness of life I lose sight of who gives me life. Sometimes I wonder, why does God allow some things to happen? ⠀
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Through prayer and meditation, I’m reminded of this: it’s not our circumstances that define us, but how Christ continues to help us overcome them. As I prepare for 40 Days of Prayer, God continues to challenge me to remember others who are suffering and ultimately, Christ’s suffering on the cross as I reflect on scriptures like: ⠀
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“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” ⠀
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Taylor Kim, International #Advocate (#US) reflects on the upcoming 40 Days of Prayer.

Join us in 40 Days of Prayer for Africa's Vulnerable Children and Hands at Work from February 14th to April 1st 2018.⠀
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#Pray

Our vision for #LifeCentres are for them to be a place of life and encouragement to the most vulnerable children. When international volunteers visit, they play a part in this vision.

#HolyHomeVisits are essential to the Hands at Work vision of a Life Centre. A home visit is beneficial, not just in assessing and understanding the external needs, but in spending quality time with a child and his or her family, therefore bringing them value and worth. Home visits may carry a high personal cost of time, emotion, and energy, but like the gospel, they bring transformation.

"When volunteer Care Workers from the Temitope Community Based Organisation and the Hands at Work local office team in Lagos, #Nigeria met Abigail*, she was a severely malnourished 3 year old who had difficulty walking. Due to the consistent care and love of the Care Workers, today she's a different child."⠀ ⠀
Dan Waspe, International Volunteer (#UK)⠀
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Meanwhile in Africa: Season 3⠀
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Join us on Monday, January 29th, for the first episode of season 3! Every Monday, listen to George Snyman, co-founder of Hands at Work, share a new 3 minute message about serving the poor in Africa. Link in bio.